Discussion

good bakeries and Campanile restaurant

We'll be visiting friends in the Silverlake area during Oct. 16th-25th and am wondering where else besides La Brea bakery we can get quality bread. I'm also craving bagels. Campanile has been highly recommended but I'm curious what locals say, as the same folks who told us about it also suggested the Ivy, which we have no interest in...many thanks for any and all suggestions!

Backdoor Bakery on Silverlake Bl has its fans and its detractors. In any case they've got a big selection of muffins etc and it's a fun place to sit and people-watch...Only a few minutes from Silverlake is L.A. Bakery on Los Feliz Bl in Atwater -- smaller selection but maybe better bread... Both places serve lunch, neither competitive with La Brea in any real way... People used to say Figaro on Vermont had the best croissants in town but now they say it's gone down hill... You also might want to check out cuban and mexican bakeries in the area... Guava cream cheese pastry at Tropical Bakery for example... As for bagels, I think there was a thread on this board a month or so ago...

Brooklyn Bagels is okay, but hands down the very best bagels in Los Angeles belong to Labrea Bagels, 7308 Beverly Blvd. They are closed Saturday for the sabbath. If you happen to make it to the Sunday Hollywood Farmer's Market (on Ivar south of Hollywood Blvd.), there's a bagel stand that also has good bagels -- but you have to buy them in packages of 6.